Go West Young Man

I am happy to report that for seven straight days all has been well on the home front, car front, and computer front. Not only was life wonderfully quiet last week, but it was also full of Lavish (with a capital "L") gifts.  Everywhere I turned, people were doing gracious, caring things on my behalf. 

I've told you already about the friends who spent hours helping me clean my apartment last Sunday. That was just the beginning of my week of gifts. A couple of days later, my neighbor, L, gave me her piano. For free.

Playing the piano is a source of great comfort and joy for me. It is a cathartic and creative outlet that I've missed the last several years. Now that I have very own piano, I've been dancing frequent mental jigs — to the tune of Scott Joplin's "The Entertainer," naturally.

Upon receiving the piano, I realized we had a problem, Houston: it was going to be tricky to move it from L's house to my house. I had two days before I'd fly to Portland, and I didn't know if that was enough time to find and schedule movers. Because the last two months' mishaps have used up all my troubleshooting powers, I pushed the dilemma aside. Maybe the piano would just up and move itself?

Hours later, I met a woman who is moving into the house across the street from me. She'd heard from L that I needed my piano moved, so upon meeting me she said, "I have a piano mover coming Saturday to move my piano into my new house; I'll have him move L's piano to your house, too." 

Jackpot! I could get uuuuused to this easy living.

The next day I dropped by the house of my favorite pair of brothers (well, besides my pair of brothers, of course). I love these guys. I'd camp in their backyard every night if I could. Instead, I visit on Thursdays after I tutor and we sit around and try to plumb the depths of the world's mysteries. We also eat. I am known for eating entire bags of chips, by myself, during our conversations. And so you can imagine my delight when John, the oldest of the brothers, said, "Sarah, I got your favorite chips at Trader Joe's in case you were hungry. They're on the top shelf."

And then I ate half a bag of chips and he, his brother and I tried to figure out the telos of both romantic and non-romantic kissing. Which, it turns out, is a mystery that can't be solved in the time it takes to eat half a bag of chips.

The next day my friend Doug fixed my vacuum cleaner. On Sunday, when he'd come to help me clean my studio, he'd discovered that the belt was broken. So he went online, bought a new belt for me, and then, after the belts arrived, he fixed my 'cume. And just like that, I was cleaning up dirt and lint like nobody's business.

And finally, on Friday evening, my friends Kevy, Greg and I drove into the sunset up the coast in Kevy's convertible.

Kevy and I

 

Greg

We blasted Michael W. Smith's "Go West Young Man," and the wind gave me dreadlocks, and I gulped gallons of balmy sea breeze.

Looking at the ocean

Sweet heavens: there is very little on earth that beats cruising up the Pacific Coast Highway at sunset in a convertible.

When my dreadlocks were Bob Marley status, we stopped for dinner at a yummy restaurant. "I'm buying you dinner, Sarah," Kevy said. "I want you to feel special after the difficulties of the last few months."

And oh man, do I feel special. My community has been pressing in from all directions and I've felt wrapped up in a big ol' hug all week. I like being in the middle of this hug.

And today, I'm in Washington with my family on vacation.

The drive from the airport to my folks' house is stunning. Just look at that expansive sky!

Can this hug get any warmer, this week any better? Why, I believe my little brother is about to get out of bed and join me for tea before church, so yes, yes it can.

Happy Sunday, my friends!

-Sarah


© by scj